Has anyone implemented a 5-year rolling water budget that links reservoir release rules, groundwater pumping caps, and minimum environmental flows into a single operating policy? I’m drafting basin-wide allocation guidelines for 2030 with about 2% annual demand growth and looking for examples or pitfalls — especially how you set drought triggers and avoid whiplash for irrigators and municipal systems…
Tie the 5‑year budget to a carryover storage target plus a small “drought bank”: in wet years bank +5–10% credits; in dry years through 2030 you spend those before cuts, which smooths with 2% demand growth. Triggers = 24‑month SPI combined with a 12‑month inflow forecast; when either drops below the 20th percentile, step down releases but keep a no‑regrets env‑flow floor tied to baseflow, not demand. @frajone I’d also cap recovery — no more than +8% year‑over‑year rebound — so you don’t snap back after a short storm pulse.